Day 3

Day Three

It was a WILD day here in Africa. We were blessed again with beautiful weather and with eager hearts. We began the day a little stiff, but once the muscles got moving they loosened up and we were ready to go.

Today we were split up into a couple of groups. One group went to the orphan homes that have been built for some time. There they worked on guttering as well as laying foundations for pads that will hold water containment vessels, the other group – which is where all of the MLC people were – continued on the chicken run project. Our work included one bit of work that was hard on the head and one hard on the back bit of work.

The first bit of work was adding the top supports to the poles we already had put in place the day before. Talk about wild, we had to miter the joints without a miter box. Thank God for our engineer on sight! John Wunderlich keep us straight – or shall we say a 45^o degree angle! – as we put the poles in place.

The second challenge came immediately after lunch, the pouring of the concrete floor for the chicken coop itself. Pouring two and a half yards of concrete is a challenging thing here because it is mixed on the ground … by hand. It is a real cardio workout to mix the concrete and then to shovel it into wheelbarrows so that it can be poured into the foundation. But with all hands on deck, we were able to get through it and pour a first rate floor. Ken Wunsch became an expert at doing the finishing work on the cement.

We ended a little bit early today so that we were able to go on an outing. It was all wild, that is, wildlife. We went to Tala Game Reserve for a game drive and dinner. We all had a great experience seeing giraffes, hippos, warthog, zebra, a number of different antelope, and a beautiful herd of rhinos. God has truly worked a masterpiece when He created this world! It was a wonderful lesson seen today.

In your prayers please pray again for our sore muscles – last nights prayers clearly worked! Pray for the people of South Africa who will be going to the polls tomorrow to vote for their local governments. Also, pray for good weather that we can bring our work to completion. We all want you to know we appreciate your support and know that we are praying for you!

Day 2

Day Two

It was our first day of hard labor and we, well, honestly, ROCKED! It all began in true African fashion with all the greetings. This is an important part of the culture. People don’t just work side by side. You have to know the people. We Christians can learn a lot from this. Those aren’t just people in the pews, they are our people – people with whom we have an intimate connection.

Then it began. A small portion of land behind the crèche (preschool in our lingo) was untouched when we got there but we immediately got down to the business of building a chicken run (coop with a fenced in yard). We are working on this project because the women’s league of the congregation want to make this either a self-sustaining egg business, which will give money to the ministry, or it will be an outreach, bringing in people from the village as a means to evangelize them. Measuring out lines, setting corners, and setting to digging a trench was the first work. Next, we set a number of the fence poles that define the whole construction project. Here was the first rocking of the day. We had to chisel through rocks to have holes deep enough to set the poles. Some cement was mixed and the poles were set in place. That was our whole morning, interrupted only by “tea time,” a delightfully civilized break with hot tea and biscuits (cookies).

Our afternoon was dedicated to finishing all the poles and, just when we thought we could wind down, we got our introduction to making concrete, Zulu style. That means finding a flat piece of ground and piling up bags of sand, a 50 kg bag of cement, and several bags of stone. After mixing that well, the hard work really begins. Adding water a little at a time, you have to shovel the whole mess into a thick and heavy concrete so that we could pour the footers of the chicken coop itself. The other rocking of the day is that we are ahead of schedule! It was an exhausting day but it was a satisfying day. Tonight we are headed out for an Italian meal at a local restaurant.

Pictures to follow

Pray for us to be relieved of any muscle pain!  Also, pray for continue safety and good weather for us. Most of all, pray for the people to whom we minister so that they might be blessed by us and know Christ as Lord!!

Day 1 & Prior

Day One (and prior)

God blessed us all with safe travel … or should we say travels? It all began on Friday morning at 5:45 a.m. at MLC. Six hours in a car to Pittsburgh, an hour and a half flight to Atlanta, fourteen long hours in the air to Johannesburg, South Africa were followed by missing tickets from Joburg to Durban. But Pastor Hardy, as always, comes through and we arrived here in Bothas Hill, South Africa, around 11:00 p.m. (local time, 5 pm Saturday your time).

Today we were blessed with a postcard picture sort of day to drive out to Ntshongweni village and worshipped with our Zulu brothers and sisters in Christ. It was a service filled with the love of Christ. Pr. Thwala amazed us all with his ability to lead worship while cutting back and forth from Zulu to English. Pr. Hardy offered the prayers and our own Pr. K was privileged to celebrate the Sacrament of the Altar. Though it was a two hour service, it flew by as the Zulu voices led us in praise of our Savior God.

After our morning in the village, we traveled down to uShaka (you can find it by Goggling it), an afternoon filled with shopping, lunch, and getting our feet wet in the Indian Ocean – which was rather chilly! Our evening finished up with a brai (South African for BBQs) and an in-country briefing. We are resting up for our first day of hard work tomorrow. Please pray for the little boy who sat in Pam’s lap during church – he lost his mother in the last two or three weeks. Also, pray for Shara and Julia, the American missionaries here. Lastly, pray for us that our bodies are strong and that our faith may shine through us.

Rev. Hardy, Kaster, Shara & Rev. Thwala

Schedule

SHONGWENI EXPERIENCE

14 – 21 May 2011

 

Day 1 (Sat 14 May)                                                                                                                                                                    Arrival    

The group will be met by an African Exposure representative on your arrival at Durban International Airport (from the airport it is a 30 minute drive to your accommodation venue).  On arrival at the accommodation venue you will be assisted with check in. The balance of the evening will be at leisure.

Day 2 (Sun 15 May)                                                         Shongweni Church Service                                                                             

This morning we will attend the church service in Shongweni. After the church service we will have some free time to shop, walk along the beach or simply relax.

At 17h30 we will congregate for an in country briefing.  The briefing will include safety on site, cultural considerations, what to expect from the week and the tasks that are planned for the group.  This is also an opportunity for group members to have any questions answered.

A traditional South African Braai at the pool will follow the briefing - weather permitting.  

Day 3 (Mon 16 May)                                                                                                                                                           Shongweni

The group will depart the accommodation venue, after breakfast at 08h00 and make your way to the Shongweni Valley and the Ntshongweni community.  On arrival you will begin work on the various projects set aside for the group.

At 15h50 group members will be asked to pack and tidy up the site in order to be ready to depart at 16h00 and return to the accommodation venue. 

On arrival at the hotel we will have a short de-briefing and question session for those interested - Venue to be confirmed.

This evening the group will depart the accommodation venue at 18h30 for dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 4 (Tues 17 May )                                                  Shongweni & Game Drive                                                                         

You will depart the hotel at 08h00 and head straight to the sites for another day of work and community interaction.

At 14h45 you will pack up and at 15h00 we will make our way across to the Tala Private Game Reserve for a game drive in an open game viewing vehicle with an experienced field guide.  On the drive you will have the opportunity to see some of Africa’s famous wildlife, including Rhino, Buffalo, Giraffe, Hippo and numerous antelope species.  Part of the drive will be a night drive which gives you a chance to see some of our nocturnal species, such as genet, porcupine, bush babies and the African wildcat.

After the game drive there will be a stop in the reserve to enjoy a traditional ‘bush braai’ – a barbecue under the African sky surrounded by wild animals (weather permitting).

Return to the hotel at around 20h00.

Day 5 (Wed 18 May)                                                        Shongweni 

Depart the accommodation venue at 08h00 and head straight to Shongweni for another full day of work. At 15h50 we will pack up again and at 16h00 we will depart for the accommodation venue.

On arrival at the accommodation venue we will have a short de-briefing and question session for those interested - Venue to be confirmed.

This evening dinner will be served the accommodation venue at around 19h00.

Day 6 (Thurs 19 May)                                                     Shongweni & Community                                                                     

Depart the accommodation venue at 08h00 and head straight to Shongweni for another full day of work and community interaction.

At 15h50 we will pack up again and at 16h00 we will spend some time interacting with the local congregation and perhaps enjoy a quick sociable game of soccer with the local kids.  Then we will enjoy a traditional meal at the church / community centre which will be lovingly prepared by some of the local congregation. 

Day 7 (Fri 20 May)                                                           Shongweni                                                                                                   

Depart hotel at 08h00 and head up to the Valley for the final day of work.  Enjoy your last day in Shongweni and interacting with the people you have worked with over the week.

You will pack up for the last time at around 14h00 and after fond farewells you will depart the Shongweni Valley for the accommodation venue.

This evening we will depart the hotel at 18h30 and head into Durban for dinner at a local restaurant overlooking the Indian Ocean.

Day 8 (Sat 21 Oct)                                                             Home Time                                                                                                   

This morning an excursion will be arranged to the local Farmer’s Market in the area – a truly local experience, alternatively enjoy a nice sleep in on your day off. 

After the Farmers market we will return to the accommodation venue to freshen up, have breakfast and pack up before heading down to Durban to visit the Victoria Street Market, a local Indian and African Market.  We will then make our way our to Umhlanga 20 minutes north of Durban where you will have the opportunity to do some last minute shopping and enjoy a light lunch (for your own account) at the beach before making our way to the airport.